Taiga-Sayan Turkic is spoken by the Dukhan community in the Tsagaannuur county of Mongolia’s Khövsgöl region. Presently, around 32 Dukhan families are reindeer herders in the surrounding taiga areas, on the south slopes of the Sayan Mountains. Dukhans follow the so-called Sayan-type of reindeer breeding, characterized by small-size herds of reindeer used as pack and riding animal and as a source of milk products. The remaining families have settled down in the village of Tsagaannuur and in neighbouring river areas. Linguistically, Dukhan belongs to the Taiga subgroup of Sayan Turkic together with Tofan, the Toju variety of Tuvan and some varieties of the Tere-Khöl area as well as Soyot of Buryatia. Reindeer breeding and hunting characterizes or characterized the lifestyle of these groups until not too long ago. In this workshop, besides giving an overview of the salient features of the Dukhan language, including features developed through contact with Mongolic, we will introduce the public into several aspects of the unique Dukhan culture, including their culinary art.

Lecturer:

Prof. Dr. Elisabetta Ragagnin (Turkologie, Freie Universität Berlin)

Dr. Bayarma Khabtagaeva (Departmen of Altaic Studies, Szeged University)

M.A. Chuluu Oyunbadam (Tsagaannuur, Mongolia)